Updated
Updated · The New York Times · May 29
FIFA Releases 1,000 More USA Opener Tickets as 10,000 Remain Available at SoFi
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · May 29

FIFA Releases 1,000 More USA Opener Tickets as 10,000 Remain Available at SoFi

8 articles · Updated · The New York Times · May 29
  • More than 1,000 newly released tickets pushed unsold primary inventory for the June 12 U.S.-Paraguay opener to at least 3,500, with over 6,500 more listed on FIFA’s resale platform.
  • FIFA’s primary prices have held at $2,735, $1,940 and $1,120 since October, while many resale listings sit below face value and some are less than half FIFA’s prices after fees.
  • Sales have appeared to run at only a few dozen tickets per day in May, and the roughly 69,650-seat SoFi Stadium is not on pace to sell out at current prices and buying rates.
  • Across all 104 matches, Thursday’s release briefly lifted total inventory by more than 70,000 tickets to over 100,000, suggesting FIFA may be converting underused hospitality allotments into standard seats.
  • FIFA still says demand remains strong, but the U.S. opener has lagged other SoFi matches and could force late price cuts or ticket giveaways to fill empty seats.
Will FIFA's ticket price standoff result in an empty stadium for the US team's opening match?
Beyond empty seats, are worker disputes and low tourism the real threats to the 2026 World Cup's success?
Could legal probes into FIFA's 'fake scarcity' tactics unravel its entire World Cup business model?